Cards Place Four on All-ACC Field Hockey Teams

NEWTON, Mass. - Four University of Louisville field hockey players have earned All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors as announced by the league office on Wednesday. Mercedes Pastor was selected to the first team while Carter Ayars, Alli Bitting and Bethany Russ were named to the second team according to a vote by the ACC's seven head coaches.

Pastor, a junior midfielder from Buenos Aires, Argentina, takes home her second straight All-ACC first team honor after registering a career-high eight goals and dishing out three assists to stand tied for second on the team with 19 points. The 2018 NFHCA second team All-American was a 2019 preseason All-ACC selection.

Ayars, a senior defender from Wilmington, Del., has tallied a career-high five goals and 12 points and earned ACC Co-Player of the Week honors on Oct. 8. She has been a valuable part of the Cardinals defense which has produced seven shutouts. The team co-captain will also represent the Cardinals in the NFHCA Senior Game on Nov. 7. Ayars was a 2018 NFHCA All-West Region selection and is a member of USA Field Hockey's Under 21 team and was selected to participate in Development Team Selection Camp.

Bitting, a junior defender from Hummelstown, Pa., earns her first ACC All-Conference accolade. The 2018 NFHCA All-West Region honoree has registered one goal and four assists while providing steady defense to help the Cardinals to seven shutouts on the season. She was also a member of the 2017 ACC All-Tournament team.

Russ (Melbourne, Australia) earns all-ACC second team honors for the second straight season. The senior forward also earned NFHCA All-West Region honors in 2018. The team co-captain leads the team in goals (9) and points (23). She will represent the Cardinals in the NFHCA Senior All-Star game on November 7.

About Louisville Field Hockey
Sixth-ranked UofL (14-4, 3-3 ACC earned the No. 5 seed in the ACC Field Hockey Championship and will face fourth-seeded Syracuse in the quarterfinals Thursday at 12 p.m. at the Boston College Field Hockey Complex in Newton, Massachusetts.

University of Louisville Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Carter Ayars

Alli Bitting

Mercedes Pastor

Bethany Russ

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